Scottish Executive

Aggregates Tax

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11008 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 30 November 2000, why it expects a net increase in employment to result from the Chancellor’s intention to recycle the revenues from the aggregates tax into a reduction in employers’ National Insurance contributions.

Rhona Brankin: The aggregates tax is a reserved matter. Detailed questions on the economic impact of the aggregates tax should be directed to HM Treasury. Although no separate assessment of the impact of the tax has been undertaken in Scotland, it is reasonable to expect a reduction in employers’ costs to result in an increase in employment.

Agriculture

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it will take to halt the decline in the number of growers involved in producing soft fruit.

Ross Finnie: The Scottish Executive is taking a number of measures to assist the soft fruit industry in its current difficulties. These include assisting a number of grower co-operatives to decide whether to apply for recognition as a Producer Organisation (which is an essential pre-requisite to an EU grant-aided Operational Programme incorporating a marketing element); providing financial assistance to Scottish Soft Fruit Growers’ Ltd (SSFG) towards the cost of employing a marketing manager; commissioning of consultants to investigate a future funding strategy for raspberry breeding; with the Intervention Agency, exploring every opportunity for SSFG to maximise the value of grant it is entitled to under the EU Special Scheme for Raspberries intended for Processing (which has been worth almost £8 million over the last eight years), and funding strategic research into plant health problems such as raspberry root rot. There are no plans to subsidise any shortfall in payments to growers by Scottish Soft Fruit Growers Limited.

  The aforementioned measures should help the Scottish soft fruit industry to ensure that future production is in step with any increased market demand.

Agriculture

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made, since the debate on the issue in the Parliament on 21 March 2001, in taking forward the Scottish berry project.

Ross Finnie: Officials of the Health Department, Rural Affairs Department and the Food Standards Agency had a constructive meeting with representatives of the Scottish Berry Group on 23 April 2001 to discuss their proposals for a pilot berry project. The group agreed to develop its proposal further and present this to the Executive for consideration. We expect to receive this shortly.

Apprenticeships

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many modern apprenticeship schemes were in operation in each year since 1997 in each local authority area.

Ms Wendy Alexander: This information is not held centrally.

BSE

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cattle over five years old it estimates could have BSE.

Ross Finnie: This information is not currently available. From July we will be extending the current surveillance system to include all fallen stock and casualty animals over 30 months, and cattle born between August 1996 and July 1997 slaughtered under the Over Thirty Month Scheme. This may enable the Executive to produce the estimate you have asked for.

  So far this year there have been only two confirmed BSE cases found in Scotland. During the year 2000, 38 cases were identified.

Cancer

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive when its cancer plan will be published.

Susan Deacon: The plan is currently being finalised and will be published in due course.

Cancer

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive when statistics on forecast cancer trends to 2015 will be published.

Susan Deacon: 20 pre-publication copies of Cancer Scenarios – An aid to planning cancer services in Scotland in the next decade were placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre on 4 April.

Cancer

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance has been issued on the use of the brain cancer drug temozolomide.

Susan Deacon: Guidance about the use of temozolomide is available from various sources including: clinical studies; the product literature provided by the manufacturer, the British National Formulary, publications such as professional journals and any expert advice issued by bodies such as Health Board Area Drugs and Therapeutic Committees.

Construction Industry

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what response it has made or plans to make to A Model for a Licensing Scheme , submitted to it on behalf of all sectors of the construction industry.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive has considered the submitted proposals for a construction trades licensing scheme, and has written to the trade associations concerned indicating that it is supportive of the aims of the scheme to improve standards within the sector. The Scottish Executive has indicated that it will help the industry broaden awareness of the benefits of the scheme.

Consultation Exercises

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-15057 by Peter Peacock on 4 May 2001, what the difference is between technical consultation and other types of consultation.

Peter Peacock: The response to question S1W-15057 referred to a particular consultation dealing with draft legislation giving effect to policy which had already been the subject of public consultation and discussion.

Employment

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many graduates it estimates will have earnings below £10,000 per annum in (a) 2004-05, (b) 2005-06 and (c) 2006-07.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive has not made such projections. However, the most recent Labour Force Survey reports that in Scotland, during the period December 2000 to February 2001, there were approximately 30,000 people of working age with a degree earning less than £10,000 per year. A further 50,000 were not in employment.

Environment

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what directions have been issued regarding the detection and prompt removal of irradiated particles on the beach at Dounreay; whether any such directions have now been fully implemented; whether the beach is now clear of such particles, and, if not, when it is anticipated that all such particles will have been detected and removed.

Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive has issued no directions regarding irradiated particles.

  The Secretary of State for Scotland wrote to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) in 1998 asking it to ensure that there was sufficient monitoring at Sandside Beach, near Dounreay, such that any particles on the beach were promptly detected and removed. SEPA has required the operators of Dounreay, the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), to carry out monthly monitoring of the whole beach and to notify SEPA of any particles found. The monitoring programme continues.

  The possible mechanisms by which the particles arrive at the beach are being investigated by UKAEA. This investigation is subject to scrutiny by the independent Dounreay Particles Advisory Group (DPAG) which was set up to provide independent scientific advice to SEPA and UKAEA on the particles of irradiated nuclear fuel found in the marine environment around Dounreay. The interim DPAG report is available on the SEPA website at the following address:

  http://www.sepa.org.uk/regs_licence/radioactivity/dpag/dpaghome.htm

Finance

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the Barnett Formula increase in funding to the Scottish Departmental Expenditure Limits in the current financial year was a result of increases in comparable expenditure on the provision of water services in England and Wales.

Angus MacKay: Annex C of the Statement of Funding Policy sets out the comparability for each English sub-programme:

  http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pdf/2000/sfp4.pdf

Finance

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any unlimited contingent liabilities entered into by it, its associated departments and executive agencies, specifying the amounts involved in each case.

Angus MacKay: The Scottish Executive has entered into four unlimited contingent liabilities:

  The cost of injury claims arising from the clinical trials of manufactured products produced by the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service;

  Legal or other costs, in excess of those covered by insurance, arising from any damages awarded against the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service as a result of the transfer of technology and manufacturing processes to the Egyptian Organisation for Biological Products and Vaccines;

  Legal or other costs, in excess of those covered by insurance, arising from any damages awarded against the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service as a result of it’s supply of surplus by-products to the Indian company Life Medicare and Diagnostics PVT Ltd;

  Legal or other costs, in excess of those covered by insurance, arising from any damages awarded against the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service as a result of it’s supply of surplus by-products to the Turkish company BIEM ilac;

  In each case the amount of the liability is unquantifiable, therefore it is not possible to specify the amounts involved. The Finance Committee has approved all contingent liabilities entered into by the Scottish Executive, according to the procedures set out in paragraphs 10 and 11 of the written agreement on the budgeting process, SP Paper 155.

Fisheries

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a detailed explanation of its decision not to convene an independent inquiry into salmon farming and outline any initiatives or measures which are in place to ensure good working practices in the industry.

Rhona Brankin: A full explanation of the Executive’s position is provided in the letter from the Minister for Environment and Rural Development to the Rural Development and Transport and Environment Committees, which is now available on the Scottish Parliament website.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Skye is currently or has been at any time regarded as part of mainland Scotland rather than an island for the purpose of regulations concerning the movement of livestock during the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, and, if so, why.

Ross Finnie: Skye has been treated as an island in the General Movement licence issued on 6 April (and subsequent updates) covering movements within and between Scottish islands.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will set out its powers and policy on decisions regarding the onward movement of livestock on to auction marts within island communities which have been provisionally designated as foot-and-mouth disease free areas and whether it will clarify the current situation with regards to the Orkney Auction Mart.

Ross Finnie: Revised movement controls, effective from 1 May, permit the transfer of store and fat animals from the Scottish islands through collecting centres licensed for that purpose. Orkney Auction Mart has been granted collecting centre status and movements first occurred on Monday 14 May.

Further Education

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-13631 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 12 March 2001, when funding for the development of further education in Argyll will be announced and what funding will be given to Argyll College.

Ms Wendy Alexander: As indicated in the answer to question S1W-13631, funding for the development of further education in Argyll will be directed through Lews Castle College. In addition to development support, ongoing funding for the delivery of further education activity in Argyll will also be directed through Lews Castle College, whose grant-in-aid allocation for 2001-02 was announced on 27 April.

Health

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will undertake a national audit of the services which are available to those who have myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Susan Deacon: There are no plans for such an audit, but the Executive is committed to working towards improving services for people with chronic enduring conditions. The forthcoming report of the working group, set up by the Chief Medical Officer in England, will help inform this process.

Health

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to ensure that the medical profession as a whole recognises that myalgic encephalomyelitis, which has been classed as a neurological disease by the World Health Organisation, is an actual disease and not a psychosomatic condition.

Susan Deacon: The report of the working group set up by the Chief Medical Officer in England is expected to give guidance on how best the medical and other professions can respond to CFS/ME. The Executive will be considering how the report can be carried into practice in Scotland.

Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will name the members of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network who are currently drawing up guidelines on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, giving professional background information for each member, and whether it will detail the consultation process to be followed on the guidelines with outside agencies and organisations and the duration of the consultation process up to the launch date of the guidelines.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive does not hold this information. This question should be directed to the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network at the Royal College of Physicians, 9 Queen Street, Edinburgh, EH1 2JQ.

Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Information Statistics Division of the Common Services Agency holds figures on the number of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and on whether those children are being prescribed Ritalin and, if so, whether it will detail (a) the number of children diagnosed and (b) the number being prescribed Ritalin, in each year since 1995 and broken down by health board.

Susan Deacon: The Information Statistics Division of the Common Services Agency does not hold figures on the number of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. However, it is possible to provide estimates of the total number of patients seen by GPs in practices across Scotland for attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-12337 on 8 February 2001.

Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what drugs other than Ritalin are currently licensed to be used to control children with behavioural problems.

Susan Deacon: Methylphenidate hydrochloride (brand names Ritalin and Equasym) is licensed for use as part of a comprehensive treatment programme for children with a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder when remedial measures alone prove insufficient. Dexamfetamine sulphate (brand name Dexedrine), is licensed for adjunctive use in the management of refractory hyperkinetic states in children aged six and over.

  However, clinicians may use other drug treatments to treat children with behavioural problems. The use of any such treatments will depend on the clinical judgment of the specialist concerned.

Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what response it has made or plans to make to the report on BBC Scotland News on 18 April 2001 of an increase in the number of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Susan Deacon: The Executive has no plans to make any response to this report.

Health

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made recommendations to the UK Working Group on myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and, if so, what these are and whether separate guidance on ME will be issued for Scotland.

Susan Deacon: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-5502 on 5 April 2001.

Health

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12788 by Susan Deacon on 7 February 2001, when Aricept will be made available throughout the National Health Service in Scotland.

Susan Deacon: Donepezil (Aricept) has been licensed since 1997 for the treatment of mild to moderate dementia in Alzheimer’s disease. The use of this treatment depends on the clinical judgment of the clinician concerned, taking into account advice and evidence about its use. This will include the Health Technology Board for Scotland’s Comment of 1 May 2001 on the Final Appraisal from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence on the use of Aricept, rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl).

Higher Education

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the overall number of UK university students are educated at universities in Scotland.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Using statistics published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency for 1999-2000, the latest year available, the proportion of students in publicly funded higher education institutions in the UK educated in Scotland is 9.1%.

  The data includes full-time and part-time students; postgraduate, undergraduate and those taking FE courses at HEIs, and students from the UK and overseas.

Homelessness

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many families with children presented themselves as homeless to local authorities in each year from 1996-97 to 2000-01.

Jackie Baillie: The available information is for applications made during financial years up to and including 1998-99. The table gives the number of applications from households with children which were made to local authorities in each of the years from 1996-97 to 1998-99.

  Information about applications made during 1999-2000 will be available in summer 2001.

  


Year of Application 
  

Total number of applications from households 
  with children 
  



1996-97 
  

15,100 
  



1997-98 
  

15,200 
  



1998-99 
  

15,200 
  



  Notes:

  1. Figures are estimates based on around 92% of case returns received from local authorities. Estimates are made by grossing to the reported total number of applications and rounding to the nearest hundred. See the Scottish Executive publication HSG/2000/5 for more details.

  2. The figures in any one year may include more than one application from the same household, since repeat applications cannot be identified.

Homelessness

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many homeless families with children were deemed intentionally homeless by local authorities and not accommodated in permanent accommodation in each year from 1996-97 to 2000-01.

Jackie Baillie: The available information is for applications made during financial years up to and including 1998-99. The table gives the number of applications from households with children which were made during the years 1996-97 to 1998-99, which were assessed as intentionally homeless or intentionally potentially homeless, and of these which were not secured permanent accommodation.

  Information about applications made during 1999-2000 will be available in summer 2001.

  


Applications from households with children 
  



Year of Application 
  

Applications assessed as intentionally homeless 
  

Applications assessed as intentionally potentially 
  homeless 
  

Applications assessed as intentionally homeless 
  and not given permanent accommodation 
  

Applications assessed as intentionally potentially 
  homeless and not given permanent accommodation 
  



1996-97 
  

1,100 
  

600 
  

400 
  

200 
  



1997-98 
  

1,400 
  

500 
  

400 
  

200 
  



1998-99 
  

1,400 
  

500 
  

400 
  

200 
  



  Notes:

  1. Figures are estimates based on around 92% of case returns received from local authorities. Estimates are made by grossing to the reported total number of applications and rounding to the nearest hundred. See the Scottish Executive publication HSG/2000/5 for more details.

  2. The figures in any one year may include more than one application from the same household, since repeat applications cannot be identified.

Homelessness

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what resources were made available to assist local authorities to provide accommodation for homeless families with children under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 in each year since the Act’s introduction.

Jackie Baillie: The Housing (Scotland) Act 1987, sets out the powers and duties of local authorities in dealing with applications from people, including families with children, seeking help on the grounds that they are homeless or threatened with homelessness.

  In addition to their existing resources, the Executive has provided additional funding of £5.3 million in 2000-01 to reduce the inappropriate use of bed and breakfast as a means of providing temporary accommodation for homeless households, in particular those with children.

Housing

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to review the Grant for Rent Ownership scheme following the recent European decision on a similar English scheme.

Jackie Baillie: The Scottish Executive is currently reviewing the Grants for Rent or Owner Occupation (GRO) scheme with Scottish Homes and the UK Government to identify the implications of the Decision on English Partnerships’ "Partnership Investment Programme" for GRO. When we have completed the review we will decide how to take matters forward.

Justice

Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prisoners were released on parole in 2000; how many of these were serving life sentences for (a) violence, (b) drug dealing offences and (c) sex crimes, and what the level of recall to prison was in each of these categories.

Mr Jim Wallace: In the year ended 31 December 2000, the Parole Board recommended the early release on licence of 374 prisoners sentenced to a term of imprisonment of four years or more. Scottish Ministers were statutorily obliged to accept the board’s recommendation in 344 of the cases concerned. Of the 30 cases over which Scottish Ministers exercised discretion, they accepted the Parole Board’s recommendation in all but one. In view of the timing and terms of the board’s recommendations, some of the prisoners concerned may not have been released until 2001.

  32 life prisoners, including 10 designated life prisoners whom the Parole Board directed should be released, were released on life licence. The remainder were released following a recommendation from the board and after consultation with the judiciary. 30 of those concerned had been convicted of murder, one of wilful fireraising and one of various crimes, including rape and assault and assault and robbery. Two life prisoners were recalled to custody because they faced criminal allegations involving violence which suggested that they presented an unacceptable risk to the safety of the public.

Law Reform

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to reform trust law in Scotland in the light of the Trustee Act 2000 in England and Wales.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Charity Law Review Commission looked at the issue of trustees’ powers of investment as part of its work. In its report, published on 9 May 2001, the commission recommends that a Trustee (Scotland) Bill should be introduced, giving charity trustees extended powers of investment in order to put them on the same footing as trustees in England and Wales. The Executive is consulting between now and the end of September 2001 on the recommendations in the commission’s report. We will consider this matter further in the light of responses to the consultation and the recommendations in the 1999 report of the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission.

Ministerial Correspondence

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide the information sought by Iain McKie on behalf of Shirley McKie, most recently in Mr McKie’s letter of 6 May 2001 to the Minister for Justice.

Mr Jim Wallace: A reply to Mr Iain McKie’s letter of 6 May 2001 issued on 21 May 2001.

Ministers

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated average cost was in 2000-01 of providing official support to ministers when giving evidence to a committee of the Parliament.

Mr Tom McCabe: That information is not held in the format requested.

Public Appointments

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of any chief executives of Scottish public bodies, other than the Chief Executive of VisitScotland, who have other paid remuneration or directorships.

Angus MacKay: The information is not held centrally. Public bodies are required to ensure that staff adhere to rules covering private interests and possible conflicts with public duties.

Public Appointments

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated average cost was in 2000-01 of advertising an appointment to a non-departmental public body.

Angus MacKay: During the period in question, some 61 vacancies to non-departmental public bodies were advertised for a total cost of almost £242,000. The average cost of advertising an appointment amounted to £3,966. Under the terms of the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code, not all vacancies are required to be advertised.

  The Executive is currently looking at ways in which the overall costs of advertising public appointments can be reduced without compromising the principle that vacancies should be promoted as widely as possible. One example of where progress on this front has been made is the Executive’s public appointments website which was launched at the end of last November. Details of all vacancies are placed on the site and to date over 8,000 hits have been recorded.

Public Transport

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are planned to increase public transport access to Edinburgh from towns and villages which do not have connections.

Sarah Boyack: The provision of local bus services is a matter for the commercial judgment of individual bus operators and for local authorities where they identify a social need. The Transport (Scotland) Act 2001 provides local authorities with a toolkit of options to improve bus service provision across Scotland.

  In addition, the Scottish Executive is currently undertaking a series of multi-modal studies which will provide us with a demand analysis and technical appraisal which will assist with prioritising support under such programmes as the Public Transport Fund and Rail Passenger Partnership fund.

  As a consequence of the UK Transport Act 2001, a number of important executive functions were transferred to Scottish Ministers including the authority to give binding Directions and Guidance to the Strategic Rail Authority for the Scottish passenger rail franchise. The first stage in producing these directions and guidance was a public consultation on the Scottish Executive’s paper Strategic Priorities for Scotland’s Passenger Railway. Among other things, the consultation document emphasises our desire to reduce peripherality, and develop and sustain rail links to rural areas. The outcome of this exercise, which closed at the end of February, will be used to inform the Executive’s Directions and Guidance.

  So that the Scottish Executive and the Strategic Rail Authority will be better placed to appraise bids for the re-letting of the Scottish passenger rail franchise, the Scottish Executive will be conducting a Central Scottish Rail Study. A number of Stakeholders will be consulted including the Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive, SESTRANS, WESTRANS and Railtrack. The study is expected to be let shortly.

Renewable Energy

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money it has committed to the development of the renewable energy industry since 1 July 1999.

Rhona Brankin: Funding for research and development of renewable energy is a reserved matter, and is the responsibility of the Department of Trade and Industry. Scottish developers and Scottish projects have received around £10 million in funding from these programmes over the last 10 years. In addition, Scottish Enterprise have worked with the renewable energy industry in Scotland for several years to support its development, including some financial support and a series of seminars for companies interested in diversifying into renewable energy.

Renewable Energy

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what resources are available to make capital grants to organisations and/or electricity companies involved in the development of electricity generation from wave technology.

Rhona Brankin: Currently, there are no capital grants available for the development of wave technology, although the industry has benefited down the years from the Department of Trade and Industry’s research and development programme, and will continue to do so as funding in this area increases.

  Wave energy has made great progress in Scotland, due at least in part to the support provided under the third round of the Scottish Renewables Obligation. We will continue to work closely with the industry as we consider appropriate ways in which to help further the industry in Scotland.

Renewable Energy

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what studies it is currently undertaking into the upgrading of the capacity of the Scottish electricity grid to support more energy from renewable sources.

Rhona Brankin: We are about to award a contract to update the report completed in 1993 on Scotland’s renewable resource. Running concurrently with that, the two Scottish electricity grid owners are, with external validation, conducting a study of the capacity of the network to accommodate the new renewable capacity that we expect our policies to bring on stream. Both reports are due to be available later in the summer.

Roads

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements it has made following the award of the trunk road maintenance contracts regarding the funding of ongoing revenue costs, including future maintenance and replacement costs, in relation to street lights on trunk roads where these are on circuits together with local authority lighting.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive retains responsibility for maintenance and replacement costs for all street lighting on trunk roads. Negotiations will commence very soon with the local authorities on the nature and scope of the work required, including the appropriate sharing of costs, where trunk road lighting shares electrical circuits or supplies with local road lighting and where such circuits require maintenance or replacement. The Scottish Executive will continue to pay the cost of the electricity supply directly based on an inventory of trunk road lighting.

Roads

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements it has made following the award of the trunk road maintenance contracts regarding the sharing of ongoing revenue costs, including future maintenance and replacement costs, in relation to traffic lights at intersections of trunk roads and local authority roads.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive retains responsibility for all maintenance and repair costs for traffic signal installations at intersections of trunk roads and local authority roads. Where such signal installations are linked to local authority control rooms as part of a wider system of traffic control within urban areas, agreement has been reached with the local authorities to pay a proportionate cost for the operation of the system.

Roads

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-14599 by Sarah Boyack on 23 April 2001, why no resources have been committed to funding the preparatory work for the development of the proposed Aberdeen western peripheral route.

Sarah Boyack: My answer to question S1W-14599 set out the Executive’s planned expenditure on the motorway and trunk road network 2001-02 to 2005-06. The proposed Aberdeen western peripheral is not a trunk road. On 14 March I announced a £1.25 million package of support to help the North East Scotland Economic Development Partnership to advance their proposed Modern Transport System, which includes the western peripheral.

Roads

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will reconsider its decision not to agree to Fife Council’s request for new signposting on the A985 to the historic villages of Limekilns and Charlestown.

Sarah Boyack: The original proposals submitted by Fife Council last year were not in accordance with Tourist Signposting Policy. However, revised proposals submitted earlier this year are likely to be approved by Executive officials who will be discussing the final design details and locations with Fife Council in the near future.

Scottish Criminal Records Office

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which public body has legal responsibility for the acts and omissions of the Scottish Criminal Records Office in relation to complaints and civil actions against (a) civilian employees and (b) police employees.

Mr Jim Wallace: Legal responsibility for the acts and omissions of the civilian staff during the course of their work at the Scottish Criminal Record Office (SCRO) lies with the staff concerned and, in certain circumstances, could lie with their employers, the Strathclyde Joint Police Board. It would be for the individual claimant to determine whether the circumstances of the case are such that the employer may be vicariously liable for the acts or omissions of the members of staff.

  Responsibility for the acts or omissions of police constables engaged on central service at SCRO in terms of the Police (Scotland) Act 1967 would lie with the individual constables and, in certain circumstances, could lie with the Scottish Ministers.

Scottish Executive Publications

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what requirements it specifies regarding the use of recycled paper when procuring printing services for public documents.

Angus MacKay: Scottish Executive public documents are produced using four types of paper which meet environmental criteria. The selection of paper is determined by the design and print specification of the document or publication, and may be one of the following types:

  The approved material composition of documents is as follows:

  paper produced from 100% Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) material which carries an Ecolabel for low emissions during production and which originates from sustainable forests and is 100% recyclable;

  paper produced from 100% ECF material which originates from sustainable forests and is 100% recyclable;

  100% post-consumer waste recycled paper which is 100% recyclable;

  80% post consumer waste recycled paper which is 100% recyclable.

Scottish Executive Publications

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many consultation documents have been issued in the last 12 months; how many of these documents were printed on recycled paper, and what the proportion was of recycled paper in each publication.

Angus MacKay: A total of 134 consultation documents has been issued in the last 12 months. None used recycled paper. The paper used was produced from 100% Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) material which carries an Ecolabel for low emissions during production. The paper originates from sustainable forests and is 100% recyclable.

Scottish Executive Publications

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made any assessment of the cost implications of procuring the printing of more documents on recycled paper and, if so, whether it will give details.

Angus MacKay: It is estimated that the additional cost of paper which would be incurred through producing all Scottish Executive publications on recycled paper would be £300,000.

  In addition to the increased paper costs there are associated printing costs which have not been quantified. Recycled paper is, however, used for 77% of non-specialist paper requirements and there is no price premium for this.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is considering relocating the Glasgow headquarters of the Scottish Qualifications Authority to Dalkeith.

Mr Jack McConnell: It is for the Scottish Qualifications Authority to consider its own accommodation requirements. Any proposal to relocate the authority’s Glasgow headquarters would require the approval of the Scottish Executive and have to comply with the Executive’s policy on the location and relocation of public service jobs in Scotland. No such proposal has been received.

Tourism

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding the Scottish Tourist Board has given each area tourist board in the current financial year and whether it will show these amounts expressed both as a percentage of the total overall funding given to area tourist boards and per capita.

Mr Alasdair Morrison: Levels of grants awarded to area tourist boards by VisitScotland are an operational matter for VisitScotland itself. The remainder of the information requested is not held centrally.

Tourism

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what specific assistance is available to agricultural businesses which wish to diversify into tourism-related activities and whether it wishes to encourage such diversification.

Ross Finnie: The Executive is keen to support those involved in agricultural business who wish to diversify. Grant schemes have been available to assist those businesses with a wide range of diversification options, including tourism-related activities. Earlier this year, I launched the Agricultural Business Development Scheme, an element of which provides support for diversification activities in rural areas in the Highlands and Islands. I hope to launch the Farm Business Development Scheme shortly to provide similar support for rural areas outwith the Highlands and Islands.

Waste Management

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether satisfactory arrangements are in place for the control of illegal dumping and deposit of litter and rubbish.

Rhona Brankin: It is an offence not to dispose of waste properly and to cause litter. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency and local authorities have the power to serve notice on landowners to clear their land of illegally dumped material and to investigate flytipping and submit reports to the Procurator Fiscal. Local authorities also have the power to impose a fixed penalty on people dropping litter and can require the occupiers of littered publicly-accessible private ground, such as a marketplace or car park, to ensure that litter is removed. However, it will never be possible to eliminate either flytipping or littering so long as those responsible ignore society’s entitlement to a safe and clean environment.